www.reporternews.com/news/2011/aug/05/...creased-role-in-power-usage/ Wind power playing increased role in power generation Turbines reliable during peak demand - By Jaime Adame
- Abilene Reporter-News
- Posted August 5, 2011 at 9:21 p.m
It may be only a small fraction of the power generated for Texans, but wind turbines have contributed more than expected during the record power usage reported this week by electric grid officials in Texas, industry advocates said. "They count on about 800 or 900 megawatts of wind being available at odd peak periods," said Michael Goggin, manager of transmission policy for the American Wind Energy Association, a national trade organization. On Wednesday, wind contributed about 2,000 megawatts during the peak hour of a record-setting day for power usage — "so we've been exceeding that by about a factor of two," noted Goggin, calling the amount of wind power generated "pretty good for this peak period." The amount of peak-hour wind power contributed enough power for roughly 400,000 homes, but wind made up only about 3 percent of the 68,294 megawatts during Wednesday's record peak usage hour, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. Statistics for last year show that natural gas and coal plants produced 78 percent of energy for the portion of the state serviced by the ERCOT power grid. Wind produced 8 percent of energy last year. But with the ongoing installation of transmission lines, industry advocates said that number should grow after the lines' expected 2013 completion date. "If you go anywhere between Post (southeast of Lubbock) and Winters, you can see hundreds of people working on transmission lines right now, said Greg Wortham, executive director of the Texas Wind Energy Clearinghouse and mayor of Sweetwater. Texas remains the leader nationally for wind capacity, with more than a fourth of the 42,432 megawatts of United States' installed capacity, according to the most recent statistics from the American Wind Energy Association. "Wind could contribute more today if there were more transmission lines," Wortham said. Some wind farms have long-term deals with utility service providers, while others sell power on a merchant, or short-term contract, basis and take in more revenue when market prices rise — as they have this summer with the rise in demand. "In recent years, standard contracts have been more profitable to ranchers and farmers" who earn royalties for wind turbines on their land, Wortham said. The spike in demand this summer benefits wind farms and royalty holders who sell power in short-term contracts, however. "Merchant projects are generally more rare, and maybe it's 15 to 20 percent of all the wind turbines are merchant," Wortham said. Wortham said there is new wind development in the Fort Stockton region in West Texas. He predicted more development by the end of this year to take advantage of stimulus incentives set to expire this year. In the short term — with ERCOT officials urging consumers to conserve electricity as temperatures top 100 degrees for much of the state — Wortham said the increased demand shows the importance of wind and other energy-generating technologies....................." |
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